The Connected Life

All of humanity have what we call core needs that must to be met. Nurture is one of those needs and one that initially, and primarily, gets met by our mothers. But what if you had a mother that was critical, emotionally unavailable, or depressed? Or maybe, just a mom who was fundamentally good, but didn't have all the tools to give you what you needed as a child? When core needs are left unmet we...

Mom's are an intricate part of the fabric of our lives. Our bond with them is woven into the interactions with our most intimate connections, whether we're aware of it or not. Moms are known for creating the road map for nurturing, when left unacknowledged, this relationship with our mother can skew how we experience and treat the people we love the most. In this episode, Justin and Abi share how...

Having the courage to take ownership for our life, and the mistakes we make, is difficult for many of us. Justin's mom, Barbara, had to decide between taking ownership for her failings or lose the relationship with him altogether. In this episode Justin and Barb candidly share about the conversations and confrontations they had over the course of almost a decade. Between blow-ups, melt-downs, and...

The relationship between a parent and a child is a special one. If you've ever been a parent or a child, then you know how easily things can get messy! Continuing with The Mother Series, we have a special guest, Barbara Stumvoll, Justin's mom with us!  Join us as we dive into the painful history of Justin and his Mom's relationship and how after decades of brokenness they managed to do the hard wo...

For many of us, parents can be a sensitive subject. As children our desire is to be loved and nurtured, but for some, that doesn't always feel like the reality of what happened. When parents are involved in creating pain, it can sometimes be easier to look at our past through rose-tinted glasses. Getting honest with ourselves can sometimes be the most heartbreaking part of our journey. A mother's...

For many people, understanding a woman's sex drive could be considered more valuable than a diamond mine! A woman's sex drive can even seem as mysterious to a woman as it is to a man. Often times, men find themselves guessing what women want in the bedroom, and that kind of pressure can seriously kill the mood. What if we told you that there was a road map that nobody talks about? Whether women wa...

It takes real guts to ride a 1,500 pound enraged bull, but the world of Professional Bull Riding is a full of gritty men ready to risk it all! In this episode Justin is joined by former Professional Bull Rider Todd Pierce. Todd travels the world breaking the "unbreakable" horses through a radical display of patience, understanding, and love. After decades of doing the impossible, Todd found himsel...

For many of us, we carry secrets that seem too dark for anyone to understand. We carry this heaviness until is crushes us or we explode. Here in this darkness, crippling lies slowly wear us down, leaving us suffering in isolation. September is Suicide awareness month. Suicide is one of the most difficult and scary subjects for people to openly address. In this episode Justin and Abi vulnerably tac...

For most of us, we want to feel inspired day to day and we often dream of living a life full of adventure. Unfortunately, the reality is often a life that feels boring and uninspired. The hurdles to this type of excitement are often wrapped into a simple question such as, "How do I practically implement inspiration and thrill into my life?" In this episode we hear from Lauren, one of our favorite...

Self-sufficiency and the victim mentality often keep us from experiencing true freedom. It's all too easy to fall into the trap of self-protection when people in our lives hurt and disappoint us. Unfortunately, there isn't a lot of conversation about exactly HOW to work through trauma, past pain, and move towards wholeness and freedom. Join Justin and special guest Chris Cook as they share their d...

For most of us, family vacations can be a tricky time to navigate. They're often chock full of triggers and past pain that hasn't been resolved. Often times, it can be difficult to let our walls down long enough to feel known and free amidst our siblings, parents, and relatives. So how do we go from surviving family vacations to thriving in them? Join Justin and Abi on their own vacation as they d...

We've all been guilty of venting about the negative things that happen in our lives and rarely verbalizing the positive aspects. This can be especially harmful when it comes to romance. Everything is butterflies and rainbows in the beginning of a new relationship. We gush non-stop about every little thing our partner does. Soon life gets real and things aren't so peachy any longer. This can leave...

For most of us, life is experienced through a lens of traditions and rules established by family and culture at large. Rarely do we stop to question why we do what we do. Many traditions are beautiful and the rules that govern us can be very helpful. However, left unchecked, we can spend an entire lifetime living for traditions and by rules that we neither have value for, nor are they helpful. Joi...

We all have triggers around emotions, money, and other people's behavior… and we'd like to blame them for how they affect us. But truth is, that our triggers are our responsibility. Join us for round two of a blame free lifestyle. In this episode our freshly married friends, Marcus & Brianna, share stories about some of their trigger happy moments. From vulnerable honeymoon experiences, to money p...

Blaming, shaming and complaining, sound like a familiar experience to you? The list of people in our lives who behave this way is endless, but often times we're just as guilty. Whether to our friends, parents, romantic partners, spouse, kids, the random sales associate, or especially - to ourselves, we can't deny our role in this style of communication. In today's episode, we are joined by special...

For many people, dating is a game to be played with a singular goal in mind, winning. The game is one of proving we can get someone or get someone to choose us. This often leads to needless tug of wars that end in grief and a sense of feeling unfulfilled. But what if dating could be entirely redefined? In this episode our good friend Ruth is back with us to share about her 5 year, dating hiatus an...

In order to have successful relationships with the opposite sex, whether in dating, marriage, or friends, we can't be at war with those we want to love. For many of us, it's easy to find ourselves in an unconscious tug of war with those of the opposite sex. Unknowingly, we can have entire power struggles happening under the surface due childhood pains and promises of who we'd never be, or how we'd...

For many people dating can be vulnerable, scary, and feel as though there are no clear rules on "how to" do it right. But like anything in life, there is a lot of gray space when it comes to dating and rules are more like shackles than a map to freedom. In this episode Abi and Justin throw out the rules and instead dive into 6 helpful values to help you on your journey. If you're single this is a...

As humans, tragedy and loss are unavoidable. Because of this, pain is a universal part of life. For most of us, we feel lost in a sea of these painful moments that we have no tools to navigate through. We stumble through life surviving the bumps and bruises we are forced to endure simply because we haven't been taught how to grieve. Without a proper understanding of grief, we are left wandering ar...

For most people, conversations about how we've been hurt and how we've hurt others are often terrifying and filled with anxiety.   Because of this, we spend our entire lives trying to run from the past and, in doing so, we disconnect from those we love the most.   In Part 2 of How Our History Shapes Us, Justin and Abi sit down face to face with Justin's parents, Bob and Bobbie.   Through choosing...

In this incredibly raw and exposing episode Justin opens up the doors to his personal life like never before! During a live recorded counseling session Justin speaks out about his deep wounds with his father. Through blunt honesty and tears he purges a history of bottled up pain. If you've ever wondered what it tangibly looks like to walk through the healing process this is a unique opportunity to...

For many people the word "weakness" is repulsive. Being "weak" is seen as a flaw in our humanity. Having an area of "weakness" is seen as unacceptable. For the majority of people, our ability to "be strong" and perform is directly connected to our value and lovability. Because of this we try to ignore our weakness, acting as though it doesn't exist. Or, it's all we see and we feel deeply disqualif...

They often say men are from Mars and women are from Venus, but what if all humans, regardless of gender, came from their own planet, much like a gathering of Star Wars characters. When two worlds come together it can often feel like an explosive collision, especially when it comes to our most intimate relationships. But what if our way isn't always the only way? What if our way isn't always the be...

Sex is for men right? Men need it, want it, and are driven by it. Women are subjected to it, put up with it, and mostly dislike it, right? But what if we're all wrong about sex. What if sex was made for women? What if sex was an opportunity to have so many other desires fulfilled? Join Justin, Abi, and Pietze in this mind blowing sex episode as they discuss the purpose of sex and how YOU can creat...

Have you ever found yourself trying to move forward in life only to feel like you're bashing your head into a wall? Have you ever had hurdles in marriage, finances, friendships, or career that you can't seem to jump over? Are we all "just" who we are, living some life that "just" happens to us? What if all the things that seem so mysterious aren't really all that mysterious at all. What if the pro...